BIG FISH
The adage, “like a fish out of water,” could soon been rendered ancient, thanks to Israeli scientists that claim they taught a goldfish to drive. Scientists from Israel’s Ben-Gurion University say they have successfully taught a goldfish to maneuver a robotic car on land via a top-down camera that monitors fish movements around a small tank. Fishie’s first car uses motion-sensing technology to send a signal to one of the machine’s four wheels when the fish swims close to any side of the tank. The fish were trained to reach a pink-coloured target at the opposite end of the room. If successful, they would receive a reward in the form of fish food. The fish repeatedly proved they could successfully reach the target, said scientists, even maneuvering toward it when obstacles were placed in its way. The scientists say the results of their experiment “hint that navigational ability is universal rather than specific to the environment,” said Shachar Givon, a PhD student at the university’s Life Sciences department, who worked on the experiment.
EXPLOSIVE EXPRESSION
If you’re a fan of supercars and still not positive on what an NFT is, prepare for a one-two of confusion as it turns out that the act of blowing up a Lamborghini could be made more expensive. As part of their latest project, entitled “$CAR”, “NFT performance artist” Shl0ms took a pre-owned Huracan out to an undisclosed location in an American desert, strapped it in explosives and detonated it in 4K. A total of 999 NFTs were created from high-resolution videos of the individual parts, post-detonation, with 888 to be auctioned off to the public. The auction has been temporarily postponed considering global tension, however, when the auction is eventually held, bidding will start at 0.01 ETH, which is about $34 per token.
WHEN THE LIGHT IS RIGHT
A good captain always goes down with their ship; or at least snaps some goofy selfies atop the sinking wreckage…for insurance purposes probably. Ottawa police have charged a woman with dangerous driving after she was seen standing on top of her vehicle and taking selfies as it sunk into the Rideau River in January. Comments from Twitter claim that the driver had been first seen on the ice 30 kilometres south in Kemptville. “Thankfully no injuries and an amazing job by local residents saving the driver by using a kayak and quick safe thinking,” Ottawa police tweeted. Police continued in a further news release, saying “This portion of the river has thin ice compared to other areas of the river. Ice conditions at this time of the year can be unpredictable. The Ottawa Police Service would like to remind residents to stay off the ice and remember ‘No Ice is Safe Ice.’”
ACCIDENT PREVENTION
Sometimes work stinks so bad you feel like someone just dumped 30,000 pounds of diapers in front of you—other times, work stinks so bad you are responsible for cleaning up 30,000 pounds of diapers in the middle of a snowstorm. An overturned tractor trailer on Ontario’s Highway 401 near Maitland marked its territory across several lanes in mid-January. The driver suffered minor injuries; however, a tow truck did manage to get the stink-rig back on its wheels. OPP commissioner Thomas Carrique noted that this made up one of more than 7,000 calls fielded over the course of the storm. To be clear, the diapers were not actually used. That would be weird.
